Golf club



Jan. 12, 1932. y c. G. JANSKY GOLF CLUB Filed Dec. 28, 1929 PatentedJan. 12, 1932 CHARLES G. TANSKIL OF BERWYN, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TOWILSON-WESTERN SPORTING GOODS COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ACORPORATION OF DELAWARE GOLF CLUB Application led December 28, 1929.Serial No. 417,110.

The present invention relates to golf clubs, and is particularlyconcerned with golf clubs having a head of wood or similar material.

The faces of the wooden golf club heads of the prior art have beenprovidedwith inserts of different material to adapt the face of the clubto withstand the impact of the face with the ball, but the inserts ofthe prior art have not been secured to the head in such manner as togive the best service, and after a period of use the prior inserts tendto become loose.

The prior inserts are also generally secured in place by fasteningdevices, such as screws, the heads of which appear at the surface of theface, and when the face of the club head has been subjected tosufficient use, the insert may become depressed about the screw heads,so that the metal securing devices project slightly from the face of theiiisert, forming projections which have an undesirable eect upon theaccuracy of the drive.

The presence of hard metal .at certain vpoints on the face, also changesthe resiliency andimpact characteristics of the face at these points,and prevents the club from having a uniform effect upon the ball, makingthe effect dependent upon the exact point of inipact, whereas it isdesirable that the face of the club hea-d have uniform characteristicsat least over the entire area of the insert.

One of the objects of the present invention is the provision of animproved golf club head having an insert of homogeneous material at theface of the head, in order to give uniform wear and impactcharacteristics to the face of the club hea-d. i

Another object is the provision of an improved golf club having a headwith an insert more securely and permanently fastened to the head, andwithout any exposed metal at the face of the head.

Another object is the provision of an improved method of constructinggolf club heads.Y n Other objects and advantages of the invention willbe apparent from the following description, and from the accompanyingdrawings, in which similar characters of reference indicate similarparts throughout the several views.

Referring to the single sheet of drawings;

Fig. 1 is a view in perspective of a wooden golf club constructedaccording to the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a view in club insert;

Fig. 8 is a transverse, sectional view taken on the plane of the line3-3 of Fig. l, looking in the direction of the arrows, at the firststage in the construction of the club;

Fig. 4 is a similar view taken at the second stage in the constructionof the club; and

Fig. 5 is a similar view of the finished club, shown in Fig. 1.

Referring to Fig. 1, 10 indicates the golf club in its entirety, andalthough the club which has been chosen to illustrate the invention is awooden club, it should be understood that the present insert may be usedon the heads of clubs of different material whenever it is desirable toprovide such heads with a facing'constructed according to the presentinvention.

The club 10 includes a shaft 1l and a head l2 of any desired shape, theshape illustrated being exemplary of one form of club which is providedwith a flat face 13. The facing of the present invention may be applieduniformly over the entire face 13, or the face 13 may be provided with arecess 14 for receiving an insert 15. The exact shape or outline of theinsert does not affect the qualities upon perspective of the golf whichthe present invention is based, andthe insert may be made of any shape.In the present embodiment, it comprises a substan tially trapezoidalpiece of pyroxylin, tapering in width from the bottom toward the top,and having a substantially uniform thickness which is equal tothe depthof the recess 14.

The face 16 of the insert 15 is'provided with a plurality of recesses orsockets 17 which may take any ornamental shape, but which are preferablymade circular in outline, since such recesses may be formed by the useof an ordinary bit, and the recesses 17 are preferably arranged to fornia predetermined pattern upon the face 16.

If desired, certain of the recesses 17 may be undercut as at 18, thebalance of the recesses being provided with axially located bores 19adapted to receive wood screws 2O for securing the insert to the head12. The insert 15 may then be secured in the recess 14 of the club head12 by sliding the trapezoidal insert 15 upward into the recess 14 tosecure a close fit at the lateral edges 21 between the pyroxylin andwood, of which the head is made. The insert may be secured in place by aplurality of wood screws 2O passing through the bores 19 into the head12, vand the heads 22 of the screws 20 are preferably so formed as toleave'an an-nular recess V23 around the underside of the head 22, in therecess or socket 17. The club head at this stage of its manufacture isillustrated in Fig. 3.

Any color of pyroxylin plugs or filling 24 may be used for the recesses17 in the insert 15, but since some slight joint between the filling andthe body of the insert is generally visible, and since it is desirableto provide the insert with predetermined ornamental patterns, the plugs24 are preferably made of pyroxylin including different coloring matterfrom the body of the insert. For instance, in Fig. 4, the body of theinsert 15 may be of white pyroxylin, the plugs 24 of red pyroxylin, andthe central plug 25 of green pyroxylin, and it will be evident that agreat many .ornamental effects may be produced by utilizing plugs ofdifferent shape, color and arrangement, and the exact arrangement of theplugs shown in the present embodiment is to be regarded as exemplary ofone of the many forms of the invention.

The next stage in the manufacture of the club head is the immersion ofcolored plugs of pyroxylin in a pyroxylin solvent of any kind, and oneexample of the composition of such a pyroxylin solvent is acetone, 25%ethyl acetate and 25% butyl acetate by volume.

The plugs of pyroxylin absorb the solvent and become relatively soft, sothat they may then be forced into the recesses 17 and beneath the heads22 in the annular recesses 23 by clamping devices, which clamp the plugs24, 25 in the position of Fig. 4 under pressure. Sufficient excesspyroxylin is provided so that the pyroxylin may be forced into anyportion of the socket and into intimate contact with the walls of thesocket in the pyroxylin insert, and the excess solvent carried by theoutside of the plug'and in the porous plug is also forced by pressureinto the adjoining walls of the socket, tending to dissolve the adjacentparts of the socket, so that the plug and insert become joined to form asubstantially homogeneous and integral piece of pyroxylin.

The club is then allowed to season for several days, so that the solventmay evaporate from the pyroxylin and the pyroxylin may become uniformlydry and hard, after which the face 16 of the insert and the face 13 ofthe club are finished off smooth by the use of files or other toolswhich do not produce excessive friction and heat, which would damage thepyroxylin insert.

A section of the finished club is illustrated in Fig. 5, and it will beobserved that the inserts constructed according to the foregoing methodare secured to the club head by securing devices which have anchoringformations such as screw threads embedded in the wood, and anchoringformations such as the screw head 22 embedded in the pyroxylin.

The metal securing devices are thus completely embedded and concealed,in such manner as to prevent corrosion and to prevent impact between theball and a part of the metal. The screw heads 22 being provided with theusual kerf 26 andsurrounded by the pyroxylin plugs 24, 25, the screwsare positively prevented from turning, and the plugs are firmly anchoredabout the screws. The plugs also become substantially integral parts ofthe insert body 15, so that the face of the club head 12 is providedwith a homogeneous impact member of pyroxylin, all parts of which haveequal qualities of resiliency and resistance to wear.

The present golf club is capable of the most severe use without theloosening of the insert, and there is no possibility of the formation ofany undesirable projections or depressions in the face of the club head,so that the accuracy of the club as a driving instrument is maintainedthroughout its entire life.

While I have illustrated a preferred embodiment of my invention, manymodificar" tions may be made without departing from Ythe spirit of theinvention, and I do not wish to be limited to the precise details ofconstruction set forth, but desire to avail myself of all changes withinthe scope of the apr pended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what l claim is new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent of the United States, is:

1. In a golf club, the' combination of a golf club head having a recessformed in the face of said head for an insert, with a facing insert ofpyroxylin, said insert beingrprovided with apertures and counterbores inthe face of said insert, communicating with said apertures, a pluralityof screws for securing said insert in said recess, said screws beingformed with heads spaced from the bottom of said counterbores when saidscrews are driven home through said insert into'said club head, andplugs of initially plastic pyroxylin pressed into said counterboresbeneath said heads and substantially filling said counterbores, saidplugs being 'anchored in said counterbores by said heads.

ics

2. In a golf club, the combination of al golf club head having a recessformed in the face of said head for an insert, with a, facing insert ofpyroXylin, said insert being provided with apertures and counterbores inthe face of said insert, communicating with said apertures, a pluralityof screws for securing said insert in said recess, said screws beingformed with heads spaced from the bottoni of said counterbores when saidscrews are driven home through said insert into said club head, andplugs of initially plastic pyroxylin pressed into said counterboresbeneath said heads and substantially filling said counterbores, saidplugs being anchored in said counterbores by said heads, said screwheads being formed with kerfs and interlocking formations on saidpyroxylin plugs extending into said kerfs, and said plugs beingintegrally joined with the pyroxylin of said insert to prevent turningof said screws.

In witness whereof, I hereunto subscribe iny naine this 19th day ofDecember, 1929.

CHARLES G. JANSKY.

